Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Dirty Chick: Adventures of an Unlikely Farmer by Antonia Murphy

I received Dirty Chick: Adventures of an Unlikely Farmer as an Early Reviewer. It's the true story of a couple that moves from San Francisco to New Zealand, evolving from part-time sailors into full-time artisanal farmers.

Antonia Murphy shares funny, cute, and foul stories about the animals they collect to farm. As they add chickens, goats, alpacas, lambs, turkeys, and cows to their farm the stories get crazier and grosser. I appreciated the amount of profanity the author used to accentuate her frustration. Meanwhile, they also raise 2 kids and search for a permanent home because they are renters. It's not only the story of farming and family; as the story progresses there is the sense that the family is becoming a part of a community.

Dirty Chick is the book to read if you have a good sense of humor and a strong stomach.

Monday, December 29, 2014

The Eclectic Reader Challenge 2015

In the past 3 years the Eclectic Reader Challenge has challenged me to explore genres I may not normally be drawn to and get unread books off my shelf, so I am going to sign up again for 2015.

Here are this coming year's categories and some of the books I have on hand that fit:

Retellings (of fairytale, legends or myth) - Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire, The True Story of Hansel and Gretel by Louise Murphy

A book set in a country starting with the letter S - Spain: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway, Sweden: The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson

PI Crime (fiction featuring a private investigator) - When We Were Orphans by Kazuo Ishiguro

A novel published before you were born - I have a ton of these (since I'm so young ;)

Contemporary romance - Must Love Dogs by Claire Cook, Angel Landing by Alice Hoffman, Last Chance Saloon by Marian Keyes, Lost Highways by Curtiss Ann Matlock

Fiction for foodies (fiction featuring food/food related business) - The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender, Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel, Julia's Chocolates by Cathy Lamb, By Bread Alone by Sarah-Kate Lynch

Microhistory (Non Fiction) - A Natural History of the Senses by Diane Ackerman,

The Body Project: An Intimate History of American Girls by Joan Jacobs Brumberg,

Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times, and Corruption of Atlantic City by Nelson Johnson,

The Harvey Girls: Women Who Opened the West by Lesley Poling-Kempes

Science Fiction set in space - Foundation by Isaac Asimov

Sports (Fiction or Non fiction) - Gold by Chris Cleave, Lord of Misrule by Jaimy Gordon, The Black Lights: Inside the World of Professional Boxing by Thomas Hauser

Featuring diversity - Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter: A Novel by Tom Franklin

Epistolary Fiction (fiction written in the format of letters/emails/diary entries) - I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

Middle Grade/YA Adventure - Inkheart by Cornelia Funke, Stardust by Neil Gaiman, Crows and Cards by Joseph Helgerson

Do you recommend any of the books on my list? Do you want to join with me?

P.S. Strange Days is by Maggie Taylor.

Thursday, December 11, 2014